1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a data structure of a product technology and a method of preparing the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a data structure suitable for preparing, maintaining, and checking the process data of a product technology applicable to the semiconductor industry.
2. Description of the Related Art
In the semiconductor industry, a product, typically a semiconductor chip, is produced only after hundreds of process steps are performed such as a clean process, a lithography process, an ion implant process, a chemical vapor deposition process and so on. Typically, A product technology is devised or developed, depending on the required production capacity, by a team of process/manufacturing engineers and researchers based in a semiconductor chip fabrication plant or commonly known as the FAB. For example, a 0.18 logic technology means a technology capable of fabricating a logic IC with a minimal line width, which is 0.18 micron.
In fact, a product technology, after it has been devised or developed, can be so versatile that different products can be produced by applying the same product technology. For example, the CPU manufacturer Intel can require FAB houses to fabricate CPUs with the 0.18 logic technology, which can as well be required by a chipset design house, such as VIA, to apply the same 0.18 logic technology for fabricating chipsets that meets the demand. Thereby, different products can be manufactured according to the needs of such logic IC design houses as Intel and VIA by simply substituting different sets of masks supplied by the design houses.
Nonetheless, the traditional method for handling a new product to be released to a FAB house for production typically involves an overwhelming amount of data transferring, sometimes repeating, among such internal departments as the sales, process integration, mask manufacturing, and wafer manufacturing, which also means that numerous forms needs to be signed off before the production plan of a new product can be finalized. As a result, the traditional method is proving to be extremely time-consuming and often times causing inconsistencies and errors when transferring revised data.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a data structure comprised of inter-linked data sets or tables for ensuring the consistency of relevant data sets included in a product technology and the products manufactured thereby.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method of preparing a data structure for collecting and maintaining the data set of a product systematically to ensure the consistency of data relevant to the product.
To achieve the above-mentioned objects, the present invention provides a data structure comprising a technology table, a product table, and a tool table such that the data structure is suitable for preparing and maintaining a plurality of relevant data sets stored in the memory of a computer.
Wherein, the technology table records the specifications of a product technology relevant to one or more products. In addition, the technology table comprises at least a technology ID for identifying the product technology used to manufacture the product, a technology data for recording the product technology used in fabricating the product, and a process layer data for recording relevant information of each process layer. The process layer data are also called photo layer data because the word xe2x80x9cprocessxe2x80x9d implies a photolithography process according to the present invention. Furthermore, the technology data at least comprises a design rule, a FAB ID, a product type, a number of poly layer, a number of metal layer, a number of photo layer, and a technology description.
The product table records the specifications of a product. The product table at least comprises a product ID for identifying the product and product data containing descriptions or features of a product. Furthermore, the product data at least comprises a product link table for providing a link to the technology table, wafer size, packing specifications, and brand information.
The tool table is also called a mask table because the typical tool used in fabricating the product during a semiconductor process is a mask. The tool table comprises a tool link table for providing a link to the product table and the tool IDs. Furthermore, the tool IDs are linked up with layer codes via the product link table and the tool link table.
The advantage of the data structure according to the present invention is that the consistency of the data among the technology table, the product table, and the tool table can be easily maintained since the tables mutually linked among each other.
The present invention also provides a method of preparing the data structure of a product technology through a computer and storing the data structure in the memory of the computer thereafter, wherein the method comprises storing a technology table that includes at least a technology ID and a process layer data in the memory of a computer for recording a product technology used by the product; storing a product table for recording the specification of the product in the memory of a computer such that the product table is linked with the technology table; creating a tool table containing tool IDs which are linked with corresponding layer codes in the technology table and then storing the tool table in the memory of a computer.
Wherein, the technology table at least comprises a technology ID for identifying the product technology used by the product and a process layer data for recording the information of each process layer. The process layer data, which is also called a photo layer data, comprises a plurality of layer codes for distinguishing each of the process layers.
The product table at least comprises a product ID for identifying the product and a product data for making a description of the product. The product data comprises a product link table for providing a link to the technology table.
The tool table, which is also called a mask table, comprises a tool link table for providing a link to the product table.
Therefore, the technology table, the product table, and the tool table are established with links among each other. At the same time, the data structure according to the present invention is set up by strictly following the procedures of a flowchart executable by a computer to prevent possible errors in signing off approval forms to be passed around among different departments within an organization from occurring. Thus, the efficiency in manufacturing a product is enhanced according to the present invention such that the data among the technology table, the product table, and the tool table can be updated consistently, globally, and automatically due to the inter-linked characteristic of said tables.